Newfield Secondary School is a coeducational secondary school with academy status for 11–16-year-old children, in the south of the city of Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England, in the Norton Lees area. It is co-located with Talbot Specialist School, with which it has some collaborative arrangements. There are approximately just over 1000 students at the school. In 2013 the school was sponsored to become an academy as part of its ongoing partnership with King Ecgbert School in Sheffield, with Lesley Bowes assuming the role of executive headteacher.[1]
| Newfield Secondary School | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Address | |
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Lees Hall Road , , S8 9JP England | |
| Coordinates | 53°20′49″N 1°27′38″W / 53.34683°N 1.46066°W |
| Information | |
| Type | Academy |
| Motto | Achievement Leads to Opportunity and Choice |
| Department for Education URN | 140821 Tables |
| Ofsted | Reports |
| Chair | S Chew |
| Staff | 103 |
| Gender | Mixed |
| Age | 11 to 16 |
| Enrolment | 1200 |
| Website | www |
Physical aspects of the school
editThe school has its own private drive from Lees Hall Road which leads on to a shared grounds with Talbot Specialist School and Learn Sheffield.[2] The school was originally split between two buildings, known as East Wing and West Wing, which were connected by a short driveway, but these buildings were demolished in the mid-2000s in preparation for the school's major remodel. Newfield is now contained in a single building, attached on one side to the Talbot building. To the right of the main building are the sports facilities, including a large field, astroturf and tennis courts.
New build
editThe school's rebuild, begun in summer 2007 and completed in January 2009, brought new facilities so that the school, including a recording room, a gym with seats for spectators and astroturf football pitches. A new purpose-built specialist school, The Talbot specialist school, was also constructed as part of the rebuild; it is located on the lower field.
Mercia Learning Trust
editThe original founding school was King Ecgbert 11-18 Secondary School in Dore, Sheffield, which was graded by Ofsted as Outstanding in 2013. Subsequently, a multi-academy partnership formed with Nether Edge and Totley feeder primary schools (both judged to be Outstanding by Ofsted in 2015), Further partnership with Newfield 11-16 Secondary School (judged to be Good by Ofsted in 2017) with Woodlands Primary School (formerly Valley Park Primary) joining soon after. In 2018 it was announced that the Mercia Learning Trust had secured funding to build a new secondary school in Sheffield, Mercia School. There are now a total of six schools within the trust.[3]
All six schools work closely together and operate as an "Aligned Autonomy"[4] (meaning that the schools operate individually but share common practice and policy.) The current CEO is Chris French (taking over the role from Lesley Bowes in 2017).
Academic performance
editThe percentage of students achieving five or more A*–C grades at GCSE level (or equivalent) was 55% in 2011; 99% passed five or more GCSEs at any grade (A*–G), and 100% of all pupils achieved at least one qualification.[5] When specifically including English and maths GCSEs, the percentage of students achieving five or more GCSEs at A*–C grade was 35% in 2011 (down from 44% in 2010).[5] This compares with 49.4% for all secondary schools in the Sheffield local authority area, and 58.9% for England as a whole.[6]
Pupil demographics
editNewfield is a broadly average-sized secondary school. The proportion of students known to be eligible for free school meals (21.6% in 2011[5]) is in line with the national average. The proportion of students identified as having special educational needs and/or disabilities is above average, although the proportion with a statement of special educational needs is below the national average. The large majority of students are of White British heritage. The proportion of students from minority ethnic heritages is below average, and the proportion that speaks English as an additional language is well below average.[7]
Overall pupil absence was reported as 8.9% in 2011, compared to a national average of 6.5%. Unauthorised absence was 5.7% (national average 1.4%).[5]
Ofsted inspections
editIn 2008 an Ofsted inspection report graded Newfield overall as Grade 4 ('inadequate'), resulting in special measures status being applied.[8] Over the following two years, progress was made culminating in the special measures status being removed and the school being judged to be Grade 3 ('satisfactory') in the 2010 inspection.[7] The next inspection, conducted in May 2017, saw the school received an inspection rating of 'good'. The most recent Ofsted inspection came in March 2022. The school was again judged to be 'Good', with notable references to the inclusivity of the school and the high standards at the school. [9]
Notable former pupils
edit- Jeff Eckhardt, professional footballer with Sheffield United, Fulham F.C. and Cardiff City
- Ritchie Humphreys, professional footballer with Sheffield Wednesday, Hartlepool United, and Chesterfield, Chairman of the Professional Footballer's Association
- Ian Thomas, 51st Town Clerk of London and Chief Executive of the City of London Corporation
- Liam Waldock, professional footballer with Sheffield Wednesday.[10]
- Jamie Yates, professional footballer with Rotherham United and Boston United
References
edit- ^ "Background and General Information for Applicants" (PDF). Newfield Secondary School. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2 April 2015. Retrieved 17 March 2015.
- ^ "Learn Sheffield | By Sheffield. For Sheffield. In Collaboration". www.learnsheffield.co.uk. Retrieved 17 December 2020.
- ^ "Mercia Learning Trust History".
- ^ "Mercia Learning Trust Operations".
- ^ a b c d "Performance Tables - School Details - Newfield Secondary School". Department for Education. Retrieved 18 April 2012.
- ^ "Performance Tables - Local Authority results - Sheffield". Department for Education. Retrieved 18 April 2012.
- ^ a b "School Inspection Report" (PDF). Office for Standards in Education, Children's Services and Skills. 5 November 2010. Retrieved 18 April 2012.[permanent dead link]
- ^ "School Inspection Report" (PDF). Office for Standards in Education, Children's Services and Skills. 9 September 2008. Retrieved 18 April 2012.[permanent dead link]
- ^ "Newfield Secondary School:Activity, reports and rating". Department for Education. Retrieved 4 May 2020.
- ^ "Liam Waldock signs professional contract". www.swfc.co.uk. Retrieved 30 December 2020.
External links
edit- School web site (New Website for September 2020)
- School details from the Department for Education's Performance Tables
- Ofsted inspection reports
- Talbot specialist school web site